New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science

Escape into a Prehistoric World Where You Become the Dinosaur!

The state’s most visited museum, the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, located northeast of Historic Old Town Albuquerque, celebrated its 30th Anniversary in 2016. Alberta,” Photo: NMMNHS.

Roam the Earth as a dinosaur this holiday season! There is no wizardry required to achieve this transformation, just a trip to the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in the Old Town Albuquerque area.

On display now, the traveling exhibit Be the Dinosaur™ is a state-of-the-art video game that allows visitors to explore some of the greatest mysteries of paleontology in a completely interactive way while walking through the Cretaceous period as a dinosaur.

The exhibit depicts a day in the life of a dinosaur and how they might have lived. Working with a world-class advisory panel, including renowned paleontologists and interactivity experts, the Eureka inquiry-based simulation technology allows visitors to immerse themselves in this lost world. Six stations allow visitors to simultaneously venture into a virtual world to forage for food and water while dodging attacks from other dinosaurs, in the largest and most complex restoration of an extinct ecosystem ever created.

“Kids love dinosaurs, and this exhibit allows them to experience what it’s like to actually be one,” said Executive Director Margie Marino. “It’s great fun watching our guests interact with this highly interactive and engaging exhibit.”

Spectacular and cutting-edge, Be the Dinosaur™ features artificially intelligent and scientifically accurate dinosaurs with muscle, nervous, sensory, and digestive systems. The exhibit has easy-to-use controls and activities specifically for younger visitors allowing patrons of all ages to experience this lost world, either singularly or as a group. Explore some of the greatest mysteries of paleontology in a completely interactive way: What was a day in the life of a dinosaur like? How might they have lived? What can fossil evidence tell us about the way extinct animals lived their lives?

The Be the Dinosaur™ exhibit is included in the museum’s admission prices, which are $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, and $5 for children. Along with Be the Dinosaur,™ visitors to the museum can explore several different geologic time periods of New Mexico and can also explore the stars in its Planetarium (additional cost for Planetarium shows).

Visitors can also see live native animals in the Naturalist Center, the museum’s hands-on education room. Large-format movies can be seen every hour in the museum’s Lockheed Martin DynaTheater (additional cost for DynaTheater shows).

New Mexico CulturePass

Your ticket to New Mexico's exceptional Museums and Historic Sites.From Indian treasures to space exploration, world-class folk art to awesome dinosaurs—our museums and monuments celebrate the essence of New Mexico every day.
More Info »

Cultural Atlas of New Mexico Mobile App

Where do you belong?The Cultural Atlas of New Mexico leads you to historic and cultural places throughout the Land of Enchantment. Organized by region, proximity and interest, the Cultural Atlas will help you find where you belong.